Star Crossed Lovers
by Kohaku Kawa
Summary: This was originally just a Romeo and Juliet high school play AU but I am going to start posting any Kaider oneshots that I write here. Mostly happy fics.
1. A Mid-Semester Night's Nightmare

**I don't own TLC or anything blah, blah, blah**

**This was written after a prompt on tumblr for a AU with your otp in high school and one of them is in a production of Romeo and Juliet with your notp. I wrote this with Kai and Levana in the play and Cinder in the audience because Kaider is my very good friend's otp from the Lunar Chronicles.**

**Also this is the first story I've posted here in years!**

Cinder fidgeted in her seat in the auditorium. Why did these chairs always get so sticky?

"Iko why are we here again?" She asked.

"Um, because Kai *invited* you." The computer nerd squealed in such a not whisper that Cinder was sure that Kai would be able to hear it from backstage. "Not too mention the fact that you totally *like* him"

"Ugh, I do not." Cinder said, slouching in her chair and folding her arms, "and the whole point of a school play is that you invite people to come see it."

"Oh come on," Peony said from Cinder's other side. "We've both told you that you're the only one he personally invited! Everyone's talking about it!"

"That's just because he's so cocky about basically being the prince of the theater club. Pus, he knows that most of the girls and half of the boys in this place are drooling over him," Cinder fixed her pony tail which had started to come loose. Somehow she just made it messier, "so he knows that he doesn't have to ask them."

"Well he still decided to ask you so obviously he feels something" Iko insisted leaning into Cinder.

The curtain came up then so Cinder didn't get to reply.

"Two households, both alike in dignity  
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene"

Intoned Wolf dryly. The narrator was the only part he would agree to when Scarlet begged him to be in the play with her.

The entire ensemble was on the stage and Cinder tried not stare at Kai but found herself then glaring at Levana. Cinder was sure that Levana had bullied her way into the part of Juliet. Not that she didn't look good enough for the part, she was pretty much too perfect, but nobody really liked her or chose to be around her unless they were too afraid of what the consequences would be.

Most of the actors left the stage and the play started properly. Cinder let her gaze wander along the cracks in one of the walls, but her attention was drawn back when I fight scene broke out just 3 minutes in. Thorne milked the scene the most, sweeping his sword in the most dramatic arcs and grunting loudly when "hit."

The fight was broken up and a bit later Kai made his first real entrance. He and Thorne were alone and they waxed poetic on love.

Towards the end of Kai's first monologue

"Mis-shapen chaos of well-seeming forms!  
Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire,  
sick health!  
Still waking sleep, that is not what it is!  
This love I feel, that feel no love in this,"

Cinder couldn't hold back a snort at all of the love talk. It was too loud though, and Kai faltered his next line. "Do -Dost though not laugh coz?" He said blushing.

Thorne annunciated his line carefully, "No coz, I rather weep," and gave a pointed look at Cinder in the audience.

Cinder sunk down in her chair until her legs were almost entirely out of it. She stayed like that for the whole first half of the play, wishing she could be even more invisible for the balcony scene where Romeo and Juliet planned to marry in secret.

After that, thankfully was the intermission.

"I can't believe I let you two talk me into this" Cinder moaned. "Why would I want to watch Levana getting to be all romantic with Kai. Everyone knows she just wants to date him for the status."

"So you do admit you like him!" Iko shouted. Some nearby students laughed.

"No! Geez, Iko! I'm just not happy about watching Levana go after him."

"Don't forget to look away for the kiss during the end." Suggested Peony.

Cinder buried her face in her hands until the intermission was over.

The second half was slightly more interesting than the first. Scarlet and Jacin had a fairly impressive duel as Tybalt (cousin of Juliet) and Mercutio (Romeo's friend". When Scarlet killed Jacin, Kai jumped in and killed her. Wolf, as an extra now, gave a particularly angry glare at Kai from the crowd.

The downward spiral continued and soon Kai was mourning over the supposedly dead Levana, speaking alone for what seemed like forever before drinking poison and kissing Levana before he too could "die." Was Cinder imagining it, or was there a not-so-slight hestation before Kai let his lips briefly touch Levanas?

Levana then awoke and gave her speech ending with "I will kiss thy lips;  
Haply some poison yet doth hang on them," at which point she appeared to try to eat Kai's lips off in search for some poison. Cinder looked away and almost missed the satisfaction of seeing Levana pretend to kill herself with Romeo's dagger.

"Alright, we saw it! Can we go now?" She asked Peony and Iko once the actors had finished their bows (Levana had looked displeased with her mediochre smattering of applause) and left.

"I guess," said Peony, "but we should at least try to say hello to Kai if he's in the hallway."

He was, but surrounded by a gaggle of girls and boys and Levana had her arm draped over his shoulders.

"I'm not *even* trying to deal with that right now." Cinder said. "I'll say hi to him in class tomorrow."

In the parking lot however, they were stopped by Kai calling Cinders name.

"Cinder!" He said again when he caught up with them, "I'm really glad you came!"

"Weee'll be at the car." Iko said in a rush and dragged Peony away.

Cinder reached out to keep Peony with her, but Iko was too fast. Instead she turned back to Kai.

"Yeah, well you did invite me. You did a good job by the way." She said.

"Thanks, you too." Kai said, and then realized what he had said. "No, I mean, just thanks. Not that you wouldn't be good in a play or you know… um, thank you."

Cinder shrugged "Sure."

"So um, would you want to-" Kai started.

"Please don't invite me to your cast party." She said, fidgeting. "I don't feel like being around… people right now"

"Actually" Kai said quietly "I was hoping you might rescue me from it." He gave her a hopeful half smile.

"Oh," Cinder faltered, "Yeah. We could go to a diner or something. Are you sure you want to miss the party?"

Kai smiled. "I'm very sure."

"Um, Iko and Peony will have to come too." Cinder said.

"Of course!" Kai said.

"Are you kidding?" Iko shouted from the car "We're way too tired and we insist that you drop us off first!"

Kai laughed and Cinder smiled. "Alright, do you want to ride together and I can drop you back here after."

"Sounds great" Said Kai.

"Yeah, really great." Said Cinder.


	2. Pot Holes

**A follow up to the last chapter. I went back and edited in that Cinder uses a cane in the last chapter. I thought of it a little while after I posted it.**

One mile from the diner Cinder's car gave a jolt as she ran into a pothole.

"What was that?" Kai asked as Cinder cursed quietly and pulled the car over to the side of the road.

"I think I blew my tire." She said, scowling. She parked the car and reached into the backseat for her cane. "I'll check."

Kai got out as well and came around to Cinder's side of the car where –just as she had suspected –the front tire had blown.

Cinder looked at Kai sheepishly. "Sorry to delay dinner. I'll get this changed pretty quickly though."

"You don't have to! My dad pays for roadside assistance so I can just call them!" Kai said quickly.

Cinder caught herself right before she rolled her eyes. "No, it will be quicker if I just do it." She said and head back to the trunk.

Kai followed and hovered by her shoulder as Cinder removed the spare tire and jack. She could carry them with one arm and her hand but Kai held out a hand to take something so she handed him the jack. At the burst tire Cinder plopped the tire on the ground and then knelt on the pavement.

"What should I do with this?" Kai asked turning the jack at different angles.

Cinder laughed a little. "Have you _never_ changed a tire?" She asked. Kai blushed and shook his head. "It goes under the car near the tire."

She shifted onto her side to examine the underside of the car. "Here." She said and held out her hand. Kai handed her the jack and Cinder had the car raised up in no time. Kai offered to do some of the work but she waived him off saying, "I'm the one who hit the pothole."

Kai watched her in fascination as she worked. "Have you done this a lot?" He asked.

Cinder shrugged. "I've always been good at mechanical stuff and my step mom… appreciates if I help keep her car in good condition. Plus everything else in the house." She muttered the last part, but Kai didn't miss it.

"Is that why we dropped Peony and Iko's house?" He asked quietly. "So your step mom wouldn't know that you were done with the car?"

Cinder shook her head. "We were going to all three stay at Iko's tonight anyway. I would have just said we should take your car otherwise."

"Oh, I didn't mean to mess up your sleepover plans!" Kai said.

"It's fine really! We stay over a lot." She was blushing now. Why had she mentioned the sleepover to Kai? Why was she talking about her messed up family life? The whole school already looked at her as a weirdo and she was just proving it true to Kai.

"Well, I'm glad that you decided to come out." Kai said smiling.

Cinder smiled back as she removed the old wheel and put the spare in place. "Even with the literal pit stop?" She asked.

Kai grinned. "It's not like we're in a ditch or something and besides, literally anything would be better than having to sit through the cast party with Levana clinging all over me."

Cinder allowed herself a little laugh at that. "So she's really not your type huh?"

Kai made a gagging noise. "Not at all. I may never act again if she sticks with drama club."

"So what is your type?" She asked as she tightened the bolts in place.

"You –you know, I don't think I really have one." Kai stuttered. Cinder had whipped her head around to stare at him when he had started speaking and she wasn't quite convinced by his recovery. The first 'you' had sounded like a complete sentence itself.

Cinder let it go though. She turned back to the tire and just said. "Oh, uhuh."

From the corner of her eye she could see Kai running his hand through his hair. He looked about ready to speak again but Cinder cut him off.

"Alright! We are ready to go here!" She shifted over a bit to start lowering the car. "Can you take the tire back to the trunk while I finish up?"

"Yeah. Of course." Kai said. He shifted a bit from foot to foot but then took the old tire away without saying anything else.

Cinder bit her lip. She wasn't sure why she had cut him off. She had never expected any one to take this kind of interest in her before and the idea that she could be Kai's 'type' was somehow terrifying to her.

She brought the jack back to the trunk, got everything settled, and drove them in an awkward silence the last bit to the diner. The whole night was going to be awkward now, she just knew it. Just when she was starting to allow herself to admit Iko might be right about her crush on Kai too.

"I think I might have left something in you trunk. Can we check?" Kai asked as they parked.

Cinder nodded. "Yeah of course."

They went back around the car and Cinder leaned her can against the bumper as she opened the trunk. Kai didn't look inside though. He was looking at her.

Cinder turned from the trunk to Kai. Confusion must have been plain on her face because Kai smiled an apology and said, "I didn't actually leave anything in your trunk, I just wasn't ready to go in yet. There's something that I can't stop thinking about and I'm pretty sure I won't be able to keep up even a half decent conversation if I don't do something about it now."

"Oh?" Cinder started to ask what it was but Kai had taken a step forward and leaned forward even more. Just as she realized he wanted to kiss her she also realized that he had paused –his hand just barely resting against her shoulder and his lips inches from her own –waiting for a sign from her that it was welcome. Cinder took a breath and closed the gap between them. His lips were soft against hers and it felt like something was fluttering inside her chest. Like her heart had been given the rapidly beating wings of a hummingbird.

The kiss was over almost as quick as it had begun; fleeting like a shooting star. Kai and Cinder both grinned at each other. She was sure she was blushing, but he was too.

"Well… That was nice." She said. "Should we go in?"

"Yeah it was." Kai said and then bit his lip. "Before we go in though, you might want to know that you've got a grease smudge on your forehead."

"What!" Cinder exclaimed. She grabbed her cane and hurried to one of the side mirrors to look. Just as he'd said, there was a smear of grease and dirt. Kai closed the trunk and came to stand next to her. Cinder wiped the smudge mostly off and then stood and glared at Kai.

"Why didn't you say something earlier?" She asked.

"I was too nervous about kissing you." He said with a shy laugh.

Cinder twisted her mouth. "I can't believe my first kiss was with a big smudge on my face."

"I thought it was cute." Kai shrugged.

Cinder rolled her eyes and started to walk toward the diner.

"Wait, come back!" Kai called to her.

She walked back, trying not to scowl and just let the whole thing go. It was fairly futile since Cinder could stew in an embarrassment like this for days. When she looked at Kai though his eyes were dancing with mischief and the light in them sent all other thoughts out of her mind.

"What?" She asked.

"Well, I was thinking, if it matters to you that much we should have a second kiss now while your smudge free. You know, since it might not last long." He said, smiling but breathless.

Cinder smiled back and stepped forward to kiss him again.

**Kai seems a little ooc to me in how bold he is with Cinder, but I don't think it's unbelievable. Hopefully you agree! Please leave me a review and let me know how you liked it!**

**This is the only follow up to this story I have planned but I am going to use this fic as a place to keep all of my short Kaider pieces in one place. The next three chapters will be moved from what I already published in All Made of Passion and Wishes, but I will eventually write new things here. I hope that this little drabble makes up for any annoyance from my moving my fics around. It will be a onetime thing. **


	3. Two Thousand Six Hundred and Seventy

**This one shot works as a prequel to the last chapter. Written for the tumblr prompt "things you said after it was over"**

Kai sat watching Cinder pack her things. Trying to find the right thing to say. This was the last room. Their room.

They had been through so much together. The ball, the kidnapping, the war. Cinder had saved him again and again. The entire commonwealth, hell all of Earth, owed Cinder the peace they now enjoyed. He wondered often if they would have accepted her if she had been just a cyborg or just Lunar. He spent a lot of time counting the maybes and possibilities. He'd been counting them the entire year of their engagement.

"That's everything." Cinder said quietly, closing her suitcase.

He wasn't ready. "Are you sure?" He asked.

"Yeah." Cinder said. She stood looking around the room, one arm hugging herself like she didn't quite belong here anymore.

"Are you sure you want to leave?" He asked more quietly.

Cinder paused for a long few seconds. "Yeah." She said. "I can't… Torrin's right. They're never going to accept me. I can't live my life like this."

"I really-" Kai closed his eyes and forced himself to just say it before he lost her forever. "I really want you in my life Cinder."

He opened his eyes. Cinder was looking at his shoes. She couldn't cry but, stars, she could look so sad.

"I love you but you're also my best friend. Will I get to see you again someday?" He tilted his head down so he could meet her eyes.

Cinder straightened and so did he. She opened her mouth, closed it again, and then said. "That sounds so hard right now… but I really hope so."

"Me too." Kai said. He forced his voice not to break. It was his people that wouldn't accept her. He couldn't make her feel worse about leaving.

"I just don't know if I could stand to see you with someone else, Kai." Cinder whispered.

"There will never be anyone else." He said. This time he didn't have to fake the sureness of his words.

Cinder shrugged. "Someday…" but she didn't finish whatever she was going to say.

They stood silently. Looking at each other, looking away. Cinder took out her ponytail and redid it. Her hair still looked as messy as it always did.

"Will you at least have Scarlet or Wolf let me know when you get there?" It was a pointless request. Cinder was being flown by one of the royal pilots to Scarlet's farm. Kai would hear from the pilot as soon as Cinder arrived there.

She nodded though. "Sure. Of course." She said.

He knew it was selfish, knew it would only make it harder, but Kai stepped forward and wrapped Cinder in his arms, holding her in a tight embrace. Cinder left her arms in the air for a second. Then she was holding him too, resting her head against his shoulder.

"I'm never going to stop fighting for cyborg rights." He told her.

Cinder squeezed him tighter. "I know." She whispered.

At a knock on the door Cinder broke away from him.

"Come in." Kai said and one of his royal guard entered. The guard took Cinder's Suitcase and stood waiting.

Even the guards looked at her like she had an extra limb. He'd fired the guards he caught looking at her like that on the spot the first ten times. Why did no one but him see her for the hero that she was?

"Good bye." Cinder said. She leaned in and kissed Kai. There was a desperateness in that kiss. He felt it from both of them in the way their lips pressed together and the way her hands flitted lightly at his shoulders and his at her waist. Not quite holding on because they might never be able to let go. He felt in the way that the kiss was over as quick as it had begun.

Cinder broke away and turned and left. She was at the door by the time Kai said, "Good bye."

She didn't turn around. As he watched her walk down the hall, Kai tried to remember what the last number she had told him from her interface was and wondered vaguely what the final count of their kisses had been.


	4. Wedding Night

**Have a happy kaider oneshot! Written for the tumblr prompt "things we said when we were the happiest we ever were"**

Cinder had already started to pull her intricate hairstyle apart as she and Kai hurried down the hall to their room. She handed him pins and hair ornaments to hold as she did, Kai laughing as the pile in his hands grew larger.

"I can't stand being this fancy!" Cinder said.

"I know, but you looked so beautiful." Kai said.

Cinder rolled her eyes at him as stopped to take of her high heeled shoes. "You said that yesterday when I was wearing my cargo pants."

Kai shrugged. "You always look beautiful to me, but I thank you for humoring me and dressing up tonight."

"Well," Cinder said grinning, "I suppose you only get married once."

Kai smiled back. She did always look beautiful to him. She had been just as stunning covered in grease the first day he saw her in the market as she had tonight in her red cheongsam wedding dress.

"What are we standing out here for again?" Cinder said, still grinning. "I believe, we are supposed to be celebrating our wedding night."

"Good point." Kai said and he ran down the last few hundred feet of the hallway. Cinder was on his heels and caught up with him as they reached the door. They stumbled inside together and Kai dumped the clutter of accoutrements onto a desk. Cinder tossed her shoes at the closet and missed spectacularly.

"Help me get this dress off, will you?" Cinder asked, fumbling with one of the knotted ties.

"So romantic." Kai laughed as he took off his shoes and undid the ties on his own jacket.

"There will be plenty of time for romance when I don't feel like a doll." Cinder said.

She had most of them done by the time he got to her, but kai still undid a couple and helped pull the dress off of her.

He laughed when he saw that underneath she was wearing her usual plain black underwear and a tank top, wondering how Cinder had got away with it against Priya's preparations.

Cinder took a deep breath and ran her fingers through the last knots in her hair. "That's so much better!" She said.

She realized that he was staring at her and asked, "What is it?" Her hand moving unconsciously to her metal leg.

"You are so beautiful." Kai said as he brushed some stray hairs from her face.

Cinder smiled, her eyes bright. "So are you." She said and she pulled him in for a kiss.


	5. Unsaid

**Another happy Kaider to go with the last. From a tumblr prompt: The Thing's you didn't say at all. **

He never said it, but the things he never said were so clear in the way he touched her.

When he took her metal hand in his own, even when she didn't have her gloves. How he pressed his leg against hers under the table without caring which side of her he was on. The way he treated her metal limbs as natural parts of her. The way he treated her as whole.

He never said it, but the things he never said to other people made it so clear.

He never acknowledged people's flinches. He stared back at the gawks of officials and dignitaries until they dropped their gaze in shame. At funerals he never apologized for her inability to cry.

He never said it, but it was clear in the things he did say that never once set off the orange light in her retina display.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."  
"You're beautiful."  
"I love you."  
"All of you."

He never said it and somehow that made it more real, made it easier to trust. She had never thought that anyone could love her with her freakish cyborg parts, but Cinder was finally starting to believe that when Kai looked at her he didn't see a freak at all. In his eyes, she was complete.


End file.
